Picking up the pieces
by AgentMaryland93
Summary: A doctor can only heal so much; but she'll try her damndest to help anyone in need. (Contains an OC Spartan-IV, I intended to give a description of her appearance, but I'm not sure how often I'm going to use her. If she's well received, I'll add a description next time she's used.) (Considering making this a series of one shots. Leave a review of what you want to see!)


**So, literally threw this together in like, 2 hours? I was wanting to use a character I had made back when Halo 4 came out, but didn't know what to do. So, thanks to Darakyon for the suggestion! This isn't my best work though, so I apologize...and Master Chief might be slightly out of character, but hopefully not too much!**

 **If you guys like her, I might consider using her in future works...as well as actually giving a description of what she even looks like. (There's also a reason she's wearing the Locus helmet and it's not because of my love for the armor...ok, it's partly because of my love for the armor. But I had made some lore for the helmet; it just fits.) I'm also not afraid of using her to interact with other people's characters in stories, so let me know if you guys have any requests or ideas!**

 **I've considered making this a series of one shots for hurt/comfort and friendship! Be aware it will contain the OC, but if you have a specific person you'd like to see her confront, feel free to post it in a review! You may choose the setting, the character, and even make your own stipulations if you like!**

 **As a final note; for anyone waiting for the next chapter to be rewritten on A New Legacy, it's coming! It's just taking a little longer than anticipated.**

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"Sorry to tear you away from the Warzone, doc; but this is a bit more important than seeing how many other Spartans you can turn into pincushions." Palmer always did have a funny sense of humor, dry as it could be sometimes. She wouldn't complain though; it helped on certain days. Days where things just never seem to…go right. Days where blood and a body are all that's left, despite giving it her all.

She would grieve; she always did when she lost another soldier during or after a battle. But she never regret the choice she had made that day she was approached and offered this role. She had been a doctor before this and now she was a field medic on odd days and a surgeon on best. By Captain Lasky's orders, she spent much time in the Warzone; practicality being as it may, the simulation arena had proven to test her abilities to its limits. She'd seen horrors of the aftermath when Marines and Spartans had been rushed in for immediate care; but now she was there. She bore witness to the events leading up to them being sent into her.

She'd watched tungsten rounds tear limbs from bodies. Sniper bullets penetrate skulls causing impact trauma and on most occasions; instant death. She'd dealt with radiation damage from Fuel Rod shots and Carbine rounds. Watched as bodies disintegrated from coming in contact with the Hard Light Material rounds from these new 'Promethean' weapons the UNSC was incorporating into their arsenal. The worst were the blunt trauma of the Gravity Hammers; heavy damage from a graviton wave generator didn't always promise a quick and painless end. On more than one occasion she's had to drag dying soldiers off the field to try and save them; but most of the time she simply puts a bullet in their head after exhausting all other methods.

She could practically hear the begging for her to pull the trigger; their agonizing pain filled breathing. Screams echoing in her mind as plasma damage from a grenade burned away at the remains of limbs and scarring tissue. Energy Sword damage evident as half scorched internals were barely being contained in the fleshy carapace of the body they belonged to. Bodies filled with shrapnel from grenades and- "yo doc, you in there? Staring off into space again?" she blinked as a white armored hand snapped its fingers in front of her face. "You beginning to doze on me? I need you alert for this, you can have your nap later."

Her commanding officer placed her hand on a scanner and it opened to reveal the medical ward, "apologies, Commander. Just indulging myself. After all, these walks are always just so tedious." her voice was full of energy; always was. People often wondered how she always had a spring in her step and pep in her voice. Some whispered rumors that she was actually a doctor gone mad; evil science and all that. Considering her position, she never really bothered to listen too deeply to their hushed tones. After all; when you're the one in charge of sewing people up and dealing with your dead, it would most definitely come off as odd that you never seem distraught.

"Yeah, well, I need you focusing on this right now. The eggheads have cleared his armor for battle and one of our medics has approved him physically." she was lead to a room on the far side; Spartans around her moving out of the way as the duo made their way through the crowd. "I want a second opinion. He's not been himself; everyone can see it. Whoever cleared him for active duty is going to pay dearly." approaching the door, the medic grabbed the glass clipboard sitting on the shelf and scanning it over.

"Ah, the Master Chief? I'd heard he had returned and was being debriefed from his encounter with the Didact." the two stood there, one finding the right words to say; the other simply waiting for a response.

"Yeah, that was a few months back. After all this shit with Requiem, he's being stationed aboard the Infinity with Blue Team. Brass is determined to get him back on the field; they've sent them out on various missions. Nothing too big; occasional patrol routes." this piqued the doctors interest; it wasn't often she got to deal with Spartan-II's. She had always been fascinated by their origin; despite it still being _quite_ classified to even her.

"Those missions were successful?" the officer let out a sigh of annoyance as she looked at the door.

"Yeah, but that's not the problem. The Master Chief has always been boasted as a calm and collected individual. Always level headed and focused...Frederic-104 has been claiming the exact opposite. Says that he's become restless, aggressive, and uncoordinated. The other two of his team; Linda-058 and Kelly-087 seem to be brushing this off." she took this time to read over the information on the clipboard in her hands. Nothing seemed too out of the ordinary but a lot of intel was missing; she didn't question it.

"I am to assume then that my current objective is to make sure Sierra-117 is completely fit for active duty? Both physically and mentally?" there was a shift in her CO's stance; an unease in her posture. Then she turned as if to walk away.

"You do...whatever you _need_ to do to make sure that man is well. I don't need another dead hero coming out of this." and then she was gone; brisk, quick strides carrying her through the busy hospital wing of the ship.

Typing in a light security access code, the door opened and she entered the room. Eyes scanning over every square inch of the examination area as she spotted her patient standing over by the wall. He was fully armored as if ready to go out on a mission; helmet tilted upwards as he stared at a motivational poster of a kitten trying to hang onto a branch. "Hello 117, Spartan Pellicotti; might I ask you a few questions? Maybe even take a diagnosis?" she was walking over to the desk in the corner as she spoke. The sound of shifting Kevlar and metal being the only indicator that he had in fact heard her request and arrival.

"Only if I can ask why it's being considered that I need _another_ physical." she let out a short laugh as she turned to face him, hands behind her back as she spoke.

"Commander Palmer simply wishes to know that you are in fact fit for duty. I apologize for the inconvenience, truly. But this is far beyond 'doctors' orders; this is coming from my superior. So, if you would?" she gestured to the corner where a machine was sitting on standby. It could be recognized as the bare structure of an S-Deck assembly unit without all the flare of the actual setup.

He said nothing as he stood on the provided X on the floor and the machine hummed as it sprung to life. Quickly and efficiently, it went to work removing his armor and holding it in place for him to literally just step out of. Reaching up, he took his helmet off and set it on the table to the side. "I am unable to compare myself to other doctors; so if this is new to you, I apologize for any discomfort. I tend to get pretty handsy on physicals; if at any time my touch approaches somewhere you are uncomfortable with, please do not hesitate to tell me and I will stop. My goal is to help you, not make you distrust me." as she said this she proceeded to grab his arm and held it out at length. Bending it, she felt around for any signs of muscle tension before repeating the process on his other arm.

He remained silent all during; from when she tested the durability and resilience in his legs, to making sure he had no trauma in his head, to even when she felt his heart beat. "Cardiovascular system is running smoothly. Do you like to take early morning jogs? They're truly invigorating! Even if it's just around the Infinity recreation area in the training range." a shake of his head is all she got in return and she pat him on the back; an action that made him tense up.

Walking over to the desk, the only sounds she could register was his light breathing and her own metal boots.

"Tell me, how are you feeling?" a simple hand gesture to the chair by the desk received only a stare before he complied. Hesitation was written all over him as he pulled the chair back before he took a seat in a fluid motion.

"I'm feeling fine." an answer she had expected; the Master Chief was never known to be open about his true feelings or emotions. Spartan training and overall conditioning saw that he kept a tight lip on anything personal.

"No restless nights? Bad dreams? Headaches? Muscle aches? Nausea?" he simply shook his head as she read each one off and she tapped her fingers on the wood of the desk. "Chief, you know I'm being ordered to hold you up until I get a response." to this, he finally nodded.

"I know. If Commander Palmer is behind this, I suspect she's made it a silent order for you to keep me locked up."

"Frederic has also made it abundantly clear that there is something going on, up here." she tapped the side of her helmet; refraining from touching him any more than necessary to keep from making him uncomfortable. "So, how about we cut the silent war of staring and get to what the problem is, yea?"

"I've already told you; I'm fine." his tone changed; there was the aggression she was warned about. A calm demeanor shattered in front of her and he looked away. As unfortunate as this was, she was going to have to pry and continue to receive that response in order to root out the actual problem.

"Is it regret? Regret for all of the soldiers you let fall in battle?" his shoulders tensed, but she didn't get a desired response. "Are you afraid of something?" again she was met with silence. "Does it have anything to do with the Didact?" nothing.

"Or is it that you feel remorse for failing Cortana?" that hit a nerve. He was quick to rise from his seat, hands clenched, eyes full of rage.

"I didn't-I _tried_ to save her! You hear me?! I _TRIED_!" once the short burst of anger subsided, she watched him slowly sink back into the chair; hands running over his face as his body trembled. Cautiously, she reached a hand out and placed it on his shoulder; his body tensed up under the touch.

"I never said you didn't, John." her hand clenched, digging into the body suit slightly, "you did everything you could, but luck wasn't on your side this time. It's unfortunate, I know; it's a pain that will not subside quickly nor quietly."

"How would you know?" behind her helmet, she smiled softly; an action he would never see, but it could be heard in her voice.

"I'm a doctor, I'm forever dragging our wounded and dying from the battlefield. I've never lost someone as close as you and Cortana were; but I've watched those I've come to call allies drown in pools of blood, watched them burn in dancing flames of plasma. Have you ever had a body explode right in front of you? The initial shock is enough to lock you in place; having what is most likely a corpse thrown at you." he watched as she retracted her hand and reached into a satchel on her hip before holding it out again. He held his own hand out and she dropped a strange object into his hand.

It was square and had three rows and columns with several colors, "what's this?" his gaze attempted to meet her own, but behind that Locus helmet, he couldn't be sure.

"It's a Rubiks cube; the objective is to make all sides match. Can you do that for me?" his brow furrowed as he familiarized himself with the presented toy. It took a few seconds for him to figure it out, and when he did, he began twisting and resetting the cube until all sides matched and he handed it back.

She immediately shuffled it and handed it back to him, "again." not bothering to question the request, he went about fixing what she had taken a part. Once more he finished and handed it back to her and once more she scrambled it and handed it back, "again." raising an eyebrow in question, he took the object and for a third time, set the colors to match; each attempt getting faster times. However, this time, he didn't hand it back though she held out her hand to retrieve it.

"What's the point, doctor? Why am I doing this?" she leaned forward and took the Rubiks cube from his hand; holding it up, she turned it around.

"An excellent question; can you answer it?" he was almost to the point of being annoyed, but was able to keep his composure this time.

"I don't understand." was all he could give and she began to scramble the Rubiks cube again.

"This is you, John. This Rubiks cube is the embodiment of what you are right now. Your mind is all over the place, you can't concentrate, and the harder you try to pull yourself together-" she began solving the puzzle before holding it up, all sides matching, "the more you fall a part." she scrambled it again.

He simply watched as she began trying to solve it again before stopping mid way, "it's gotten to the point where, when you try to push the pain away, you keep tearing yourself away from everything. Problems can always be solved; they may not always be easy to overcome, but they can be solved." she gripped the corner and pulled, causing the Rubiks cube to fall a part, "the sum of anything's parts must remain whole; without even one piece, it all comes undone." and then she reassembled the cube, popping each piece into place.

Reaching out, he took the cube as it was offered to him before turning it over in his hand.

"I know it's hard, Chief. She was your closest ally, a friend that you tried so desperately to save." slowly, she placed her hand on his shoulder again, this time he didn't tense under her grasp, "but she's gone now...you did all that you could and no one here on the Infinity is saying you have to forget her. You don't have to pretend that any of this is ok; because it's not. But you can not continue to grieve like this; you'll only dig your own grave faster that way. Trust me." stepping around him, she made for the door when a hand halted her by grabbing her wrist. Looking back, her own hidden eyes met icy blues that betrayed him. She saw all the pain, the sorrow, and the suffering staring back at her.

Before either of them could say a word, he wrapped his arms around her in embrace.

She was a doctor; she had sewn up dying soldiers, patched up bleeding wounds, and lay the dead to rest after extensive battles. She knew how to deal with most afflictions; scars from healing lacerations were never anything new to her.

But some wounds can't heal with biofoam. There is just some damage that can't be stitched or bandaged. Sometimes the only way to heal is through the physical comfort of another. Broken hearts and shattered spirits were not normal. They could not be treated in traditional ways.

"I made her a promise..." she heard after seconds of deafening silence.

"She knew you; I'm sure she forgives you. After all...you never truly broke your promise, did you?" she released her own hold on him as he pulled away; bloodshot eyes staring into her faceless helmet.

"No...I suppose I didn't." patting his arm, she turned to leave the room.

"I'm clearing you for active duty; try to take it easy. I'm sure the next wound you come in here with, can't be healed with a hug." a call to her stopped her in her tracks as she turned to face him.

"Thanks...for-...for helping."

"Don't thank me; it's my job to pick up the pieces others drop. I do it happily. Remember, my door's always open if you need a hand." and then she was gone.


End file.
